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PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Introduction

Our project is a collaboration between vocal ensemble Siglo de Oro and the early music ensemble Spinacino Consort. We will tour, record, and have agreed to release on Delphian records, our programme ‘Hey for Christmas’, a seventeenth-century celebration of the 12 days of Christmas through tunes and compositions from Scotland, England, and Ireland, based around the broadside ballad of our title.

Programme Description

This programme explores the historical intersections of religious festivals, folk traditions, and winter celebrations across the British Isles in the seventeenth century – from Hogmanay in Scotland, to wassailing in the Southwest of England, to the Kilmore carols of Ireland – and how these traditions continue to resonate today. Our vision is to create an album that draws from these diverse historical strands – religious and secular, solemn and joyful – to reflect and celebrate the many layers of British identity during the festive season, both past and present. Our program consists of pieces little known pieces from the Scots Musical Museum, John Playford’s published collections of tunes from across the United Kingdom, and collected traditional melodies, along with established masterpieces, such as William Bryd’s 'O Magnum Mysterium', published at the opening of the seventeenth century. We bring this to life through the varied sounds of choral singing, a ‘broken’ consort (violin, viol, lute, and recorder), and augmented by small pipes and percussion. The combination of choir and instruments, traditional tunes and renaissance polyphony, creates a programme that is worthy of performance in the present day, as can be seen in the reception to our performance of the programme at the Wigmore Hall (22nd December 2023), described by MusicOhm as, ‘an evening of splendidly diverse music whose first-class performances … left a charmed audience…’ (MusicOhm – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️, The Arts Desk – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️).

Project Outline

We will perform on the following dates at following venues:

December 3rd, 2025, Rehearsal, Kings College London
December 4th, 2025 Concert at All Souls College, Oxford
December 5th, 2025 Concert in Little Missenden
December 6th, 2025 Concert at St Mary Magdalene, Munster Square, London
January 3rd, 2026 Concert in Esher, Surrey

We will then record our programme in the Great Hall at Forde Abbey in Somerset between the 6-9th January 2026.

Target Audience

Our target audience aims to bring music to those in the South of England without easy access to concerts in central London. We will bring our programme to the student community and early music audience established in Oxford, the audience of the Little Missenden Festival, and we will also work with the Ripeno choir in Esher, Surrey, collaborating with amateurs in our performance to provide a unique festive experience. The target audience for our recording will be those interested in seasonal early music, with another tour planned for 2026-27 to promote the CD.